Russia Again Warns US not to Withdraw From ABMA senior Russian military official warned Wednesday if the US unilaterally withdraws from the Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty, Russia may consider the revision of other international treaties on armament limitation and reduction.In response to the US deployment of the National Missile Defense system (NMD), Russia may consider the changes on provisions of the START-1 and START-2 treaties as well as the Treaty on the Limitation of Medium- and short-range strategic Missiles, Vyacheslav Romanov, chief of Russia's National Nuclear Risk Reduction Center, told a press conference here. These changes may result in the reproduction of heavy missiles and installation of multiple independently targeted warheads in them, the Lieutenant General warned. Russia "is technically and operationally capable of rebuilding its nuclear shield," he added. Terming the ABM Treaty as the cornerstone for all treaties on arms limitation and reduction, Romanov stressed that "the stand of the Defense Ministry of the Russian Federation has been, is, and will remain unambiguous -- the ABM treaty should not be violated." Romanov criticized U.S. President George W. Bush's Tuesday speech at the Senate, saying it trumpets the deployment of the NMD, showing the new administration's attempt to break international treaties on arms limitation and reduction. |
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